Empty Seats and £18 Pork Rolls: Birmingham's European Championships Faces a Crowd Problem
Nearly 10,000 seats sat empty at Birmingham's Alexander Stadium on Monday evening, casting a shadow over Europe's flagship athletics event on the night a British sprinter claimed her first senior international title.
Amy Hunt, a 24-year-old sprinter, won gold in front of 13,623 spectators — a respectable figure on its own, but barely half the 23,000-seat capacity of the redeveloped stadium in Perry Barr. The championship, running from 10 to 16 August, is the first European Athletics Championships held in Britain in the event's 92-year history. Birmingham 2026 organisers said they were "delighted" with ticket sales, which they claimed had "far surpassed" targets, with evening sessions later in the week approaching sell-out (BBC News).
The empty seats across the opening sessions drew sharp criticism. Steve Cram, the former world record holder and now a leading commentator, was among those who pointedly noted the thousands of vacant seats during the first three sessions (Telegraph). Athletes, coaches and commentators voiced concern, though organisers insisted crowds would grow as the marquee events arrived.
The flashpoint is ticket pricing. Category A tickets on the home straight for Monday's session cost £150, with no concessions for juniors. The same seats for Tuesday's men's 100m final were priced at £110 — again, no child discounts. Two years ago in Rome, an equivalent ticket for the men's 100m final cost €88 (£75) (BBC News).
Inside the stadium, the cost of being a fan added up quickly. £18 pork rolls were on sale at food stalls, cited alongside ticket prices as a factor keeping people away (The Times). Athletics supporters pointed the finger squarely at costs, with some calling the ticket prices "extortionate" and the empty stands "disappointing" (BBC News). Spectators were also advised not to drive to the stadium, which operated as a car-free venue for the duration of the championships (BBC News).
For context, over 250,000 tickets were made available across the seven-day event, with adult prices starting at £10 — though the cheapest seats are not the ones facing the finish line. The gap between the entry-level price and the premium home-straight cost is where the friction lies.
Chris Boardman, CEO of UK Athletics, called hosting the championships "absolutely massive" for Birmingham (BBC News). Local residents in Perry Barr had expressed concern about litter in the area before the event began (BBC News), adding to a sense that the city's moment in the spotlight has been complicated by the unglamorous realities of cost and logistics.
The championships close on Sunday with the Unity 5K, a mass-participation run through Birmingham's streets. Whether the stands fill by then, and whether the talk shifts from empty seats to racing, will depend on how the week unfolds.
